Trunk-tray construction.



GUH. WHEARY.

TRUNK TRAY CONSTRUCTION.

APPLlcAnoN F1LED1uNE11. 1914.

1,1 62,71 6. Patented Nov. 3Q, 1915.

GEORGE HENRY WHEARY, 0F RACINE, WISCONSIN.

TRUNK-TRAY CONSTRUCTION.

Application filed June 11, 1914..

To all I11i/'1.0m t may concern Be it known that I, GEORGE'H. VHEARY, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Racine, in the county of Racine and State of lVisconsin, have invented new and useful Improvements in Trunk-Tray Construction, of which the following is a description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which are a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in trunk tray construction.

Trunks of the better class are now usually formed with rounded edges to provide greater strength and to present an ornate appearance. This construction forms inner angular corner edge portions and the trays provided with these trunks were also formed with angular corner edge portions in order to lit the tray space Vand to rest upon the tray supporting ledges mounted Vwithin the trunk. As the trays are formed of very thin light Weight lumber or other material, it was necessary to form the angular corners of vertically-extending corner strips which were nailed and glued to the end, side and bottom portions of the tray. The ends of the tray pieces were cut at different angles to join the corner strips and required the services of skilled men to cut and fit the pieces together and nail through the corner strips and edgewise into the other pieces. Y It was also necessary to incline the upper half Vportion of the front side board of thetray inwardly so that the front depending cover flange would clear the tray in swinging to open or closed position. This angular relation of the different parts also required careful work in fitting the parts together. This construction materially increased the cost of the trunk as the parts were usually cut and fitted by hand. Furthermore, the trays were not as strongas desired owingto the multiplicity of smallparts.`

It is one of the objects of thefpresent" in vention to overcome the before mentioned objectionable features and provide a trunk tray construction of rectangular form which will properlyrlit within the tray space of a trunk and rest upon the supporting ledges of the trunk.

A further obj ect of the invention is to provide a trunk tray construction in which all of the pieces of material forming the tray are of right-angled form and may be easily cut on a standard sawing machine andthe Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 30, 1915. serial No. 844,394.

parts, when cut, may be glued and nailed together on a standard nailing machine, thus materially decreasing the cost of manufacture.

A further object of the invention is to provide a trunk tray construction in which the tray is provided with means for guiding the tray into the trunk and which means also serves as guards for preventing the outer surfaces of the tray from becoming marred by rubbing against the vertical walls of the trunk. i

A further object of the invention is to provide a trunk tray construction in which the tray is reinforced by strips of material which are tied together by corner members which serve to reinforce the whole tray.`

A further object of the invention is to provide a trunk tray which is of simple construction, is strong and durable and is well adapted for the purpose desired.

lith the above and other' objects in view, the invention consists of the improved trunk tray construction and its parts and combinations as set forth in the claims and all eouivalents thereof.

In the accompanying drawing in which the same reference characters indicate the same parts in all of the views: Figure l is a top view 'of a trunk provided with the improved tray construction, parts being broken away to show interior construction; Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view taken on line 2 2 of Fig. l; Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional detail view thereof taken on line 3-8 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is an enlarged top detail View of one corner portion of the tray, and Fig. 5 is a detail view of a modified form of corner member'.

Referring to the drawing the numeral S indicates the body portion of a trunk, 9 the cover thereof and 10 and l0 the improved trays mounted therein. The trays are of rectangular form and the side and end walls ll, 11?, `l2 and 12 extend in vertical lines so that all corner and edge joints are formed at right angles and may be easily cut and fastened togetlier on ordinary machines for that purpose. As the trays are substantially of similar construction, it is thought that a detail description of one tray will sufiice and the upper tray will, therefore, only be described in detail and the similar parts of the lower tray will be indicated by similar numerals plus prime marks.

The outer horizontal contour of the upperl tray is of less size than the inner portion of the trunk into which it extends to permit the cover' to clear the front portion thereof, and reinforcing strips 13 fastened to and extending around the medial portion of the tray serve to lill the greater part of the rectangular space between the tray and the trunk body and to also reinforce the tray. The right-angled end portions 11 of the strips terminate short of the corners of the tray and aro connected together by corner members 15 which extend around the said corners and overlap the end portions of the reinforcing strips. These corner members are of right angular' form and their legs 1G are provided with side flanges 17 which extend over the opposite side portions of the reinforcing strips. The legs 16. of the corner members are secured to the side and end portions of the legs of the corner members and through the reinforcing strips and also through the vertical walls of the tray. The corner portions 19 of the corner members extend diagonally or at forty-five degree angles with relation to their right-angled legs 16 and just clear the corner portions of the tray engaged by said corner members. This diagonal angular corner construction of the corner members accommodates the tray to the inner' diagonal corner contour of the body portion of the trunk.

The tray is guided into the body portion of the trunk and the side and end' portions of the tray are guarded and protected by rounded bosses or protuberances 20 which are bulged outwardly from the legs 16 of the corner members. These rounded bosses project outwardly a sufficient distance to engage the inner surfaces of the side and end walls of the body portion of the trunk and hold near the upper edge of the tray. The end strips of the lower tray engage and rest upon supporting strips 21 extending across and secured to the trunk ends. These strips 21 support the lower tray and also the upper tray which rests upon the upper edge portion of the lov-Yer tray and projects out of the body of the trunk and is overlapped by the trunk cover.

In the modified form of corner member' shown in Fig. 5, the side flanges 17 of the legs are joined together by diagonally extending corner flange portions 22 which serve to reinforce said members to a considerable extent. In using this form of the member the diagonally extending corner flange portions are driven into the corner portions of the tray until the legs of the said members rest upon the end portions of the reinforcing strips. The members are then fastened in the same manner before described with relation to the principal form.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that the trunlr tray construction provides a tray of rectangular form which is of very simple construction and is adapted to fit into a trunk of the round corner type.

What I claim as'my invention is:

1. A trunk tray construction, comprising a tray member of rectangular form having reinforcing supporting strips extending horizontally around the vertical walls thereof, the end portions of said strips terminating at points inside-of planes extending diagonally to and across the vertical corner edges of the tray. c Y

2. A trunk tray construction, comprising a tray member of rectangular form having reinforcing strips extending horizontally` a tray member'of rectangular form having Y reinforcing strips extending horizontally around .the vertical walls thereof, the end portions of said strips terminating at points inside of planes extending diagonally to and across the vertical corner edges of the tray, and angular corner members connecting the adjacent end 'portions of the reinforcingY strips together and having vertically-extending fiat corner portions which extend across the vertical corner edges of the tray.`

4. A trunk trayconstruction, comprising a tray member of rectangular form having reinforcing strips extending horizontally around the vertical Walls thereof, the end portions of said strips terminating at points inside of planes extending diagonally to and across .the vertical corner edges of the tray, and angular cornerV members connecting the adjacent end portions of the reinforcing strips together and having vertically-ex-A tending flat corner portions whichv extend across the vertical corner edges of the tray, said corner member provided withV guard portions projecting outwardly therefrom. 5. A trunk tray construction, comprising a tray member of rectangular form, reinforcing strips mounted on the outer sides of the vertical Walls of the tray and extending horizontally therearound and terminating at points short of the corners of the tray, and angled corner members having flanged legs which overlap the end portions of the strips, the corner portions of said corner members being flat vand extending in planes approximately forty-ve degree angles from the legs of said corner member,

the legs of said corner member having rounded bosses projecting outwardly therefrom.

6. The combination with a trunk ofthe rounded corner type of a tray therefor comprising a tray member of rectangular form mounted within said trunk and being of less size than the trunk to form side and end spaces between the tray and the trunk, reinforcing strips mounted on the side and end portions of the tray and terminating at points short of the corners of the tray, said strips partly filling the side and end spaces between the tray and the trunk, angled corner members having ianged legs which overlap the adjacent vend. portions of the strips, the corner portions of said corner members being flat and extending in planes approximately forty-five degree angles from the legs of said corner member', the legs of said corner member having rounded bosses projecting outwardly therefrom which guide the tray into the trunk and engage and hold the tray in spaced relation from the side and end walls of the trunks, and securing means extending through the corner legs and the strips and the tray.

7 The combination with a trunk having inner vertical diagonal' corners of a tray therefor, comprising a tray member of rectangular form having parallel end and side walls, the tray being of less size than the trunk so that the corner portions of the tray will just clear the diagonal corners of the trunk, reinforcing strips mounted on the side and end walls of the tray and terminating at points short of the tray corners, and corner members having diagonal corner portions connecting the adjacent ends of the reinforcing strips together and to the tray, the said corner members having rounded outwardly projecting bosses positioned to engage the inner surfaces of the side and end walls of the trunk.

8. A trunk tray construction, comprising a tray member of rectangular form having horizontally extending reinforcing support ing strips mounted on the outer side and end walls thereof which terminate at the corner portions of the tray in a form to permit the tray to be mounted within a trunk having inner diagonally extending corners.

In testimony whereof, I affix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE HENRY V'HEARY. Witnesses:

ANNA M. NELSON, C. H. KEENEY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents Washington, D. C. 

